Life of Breath

At a key moment in Hamlet’s duel with Laertes, Gertrude cries out that Hamlet ‘is fat and scant of breath’ (5.2.287). Was Hamlet fat, we may ask, as we recall the more memorable Hamlets, cinematic and dramatic? It depends, some … Read more…

Life of Breath collaborator Elspeth Penny writes about her experience facilitating a “Letter to my Breath” workshop at Barton Hill Settlement in Bristol as part of Fun Palaces 2018… It’s like a present when I’m invited to run a workshop, … Read more…

As part of the Fun Palaces campaign in October this year, Life of Breath collaborated with local Bristol artist Sophie Rae and the children of Shirehampton Primary School to create a breathing-themed mural. Sophie writes about the 5 days she … Read more…

Life of Breath collaborator Dr. Megan Wainwright introduces her new paper “Exploring ambivalent human-oxygen technology-world relations through the lens of Postphenomenlogy” published in the Journal of Material Culture as part of a special issue on Ambivalent Objects in Global Health (Eds. … Read more…

A new book on phenomenology and illness entitled Existential Medicine: Essays on Health and Illness is now out, with a chapter by Life of Breath Principle Investigator Havi Carel and PhD student Tina Williams. The book’s editor, Professor Kevin Aho, is the author of Existentialism: An Introduction, Heidegger’s … Read more…

Brian Callender is an internal medicine physician from the University of Chicago interested in the health humanities, with a focus on the theory and practice of “graphic medicine” to understand and improve our understanding of health, illness and the delivery of … Read more…

The Life of Breath project was delighted to host Professor Lundy Braun in Bristol recently to speak at our bi-annual team meeting “Breathing Space” along with a special public lecture. Life of Breath researcher Coreen McGuire reflects on Lundy’s visit… … Read more…

Tina Williams and Havi Carel have contributed a chapter on breathlessness to this new essay collection which explores the experience of illness, ‘what it means’ and ‘what it feels like’ to be ill. Read more about this volume on our blog … Read more…

In this book chapter, Havi considers breathlessness from a phenomenological perspective, reframing it as an existential, social, personal, cultural and psychological phenomenon, rather than a medical symptom. (Read more about the book on our blog). Havi Carel. 2018. Invisible Suffering: … Read more…

A new book on the philosophy of breathing entitled Atmospheres of Breathing is now out, with a chapter by Life of Breath Principle Investigator Havi Carel. The above image “LUNGTREE VI” by photographer Maja Bjelica is featured on the cover. One … Read more…

Breathlessness is far broader than a physical symptom. It affects people’s mood, self-esteem and social links and often involves feelings of guilt and shame. Breathlessness can also be a symptom of a range of mental disorders, such as panic and anxiety disorders. There … Read more…

Music & Mindful Yoga Therapist Kate Binnie joined Life of Breath as a researcher in January 2018. She writes: I am delighted and honoured to be officially part of the LoB team at Bristol! How I found LoB I stumbled … Read more…

The Life of Breath team, like our colleagues at Breathe Oxford, recently responded to the proposal that defining chronic breathlessness as a syndrome might raise awareness of its impact on people’s lives. We stress that more consultation with ‘experts-by-experience’ (patients who experience … Read more…

Recently it was proposed that defining chronic breathlessness as a syndrome might raise awareness of its impact on people’s lives . Our collaborators at Breath Oxford responded. Their research explores the neuroscience of breathlessness, particularly the networks that generate perceptions. They … Read more…

What do people with COPD think their lungs look like? Ideas about what is going on inside the body can influence how people present their symptoms and respond to medical treatment. In this study, anthropologist Megan Wainwright asked people with … Read more…

This post was originally published by CDJ Plus. Pradeep Narayanan is Director of Research and Capacity Building at Praxis Institute for Participatory Practices, New Delhi and is collaborating with Life of Breath team member Andrew Russell for research on tobacco farming … Read more…

This post was originally published by The Conversation. Anthropologist and Life of Breath team member Andrew Russell writes: New figures show that more than half of all teenage smokers in the north-east of England have bought illegal tobacco. The figures, from the 2017 … Read more…

How do we ​accurately ​measure hearing loss? In a new paper in The British Journal for the History of Science, Life of Breath researcher Coreen McGuire​ (University of Bristol) and Jaipreet Virdi shed light on ​the career of Dr Phyllis Margaret Tookey Kerridge (1901–1940) – a pioneer … Read more…

Who makes comics about science, and why? ​Life of Breath ​Project Administrator Jordan Collver explores ​the intersection of science and art in comics with Emma Weitkamp in a new paper for The Journal of Science Communication: “Alter egos: an exploration of the perspectives … Read more…

People living with breathlessness and those interested in how the arts-in-health approach may help make breathlessness less invisible, were invited to join researcher Dr Alice Malpass from the Life of Breath Project and arts-in-health specialist Elspeth Penny to explore how … Read more…

Do you know that singing can have a positive impact on people living with a lung condition? The British Lung Foundation (BLF) is working with leading singing for lung health trainer and Music Therapist, Phoene Cave, to develop and roll out a … Read more…

Life of Breath post-doctoral researcher Rebecca Oxley writes: There’s something in the air in London: a growing awareness and concern with the things that permeate the air we breathe, namely the high levels of fine particulate matter linked to environmental … Read more…